DUBLIN Feb. 15 2012 - MasterCard Worldwide (NYSE: MA) today announces a new global office for the company’s technology operations, to be headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. The expansion, supported by IDA Ireland, will create an additional 130 highly skilled jobs during the next four years, bringing the total number of people employed in Ireland to approximately 200.

“At our core, MasterCard is a technology company that happens to be in the payments space,” says Rob Reeg, president, MasterCard Technologies. “Our focus as a company is on offering innovative, game-changing technologies that offer mass appeal for our global customers and cardholders. We’re confident that this larger office in Dublin, as well as the new technology team members that we plan to hire, will help further our technology agenda and innovation vision.”

MasterCard is currently recruiting for technology roles for the Dublin office via the company’s web site (www.mastercard.ie).

Having a presence in Ireland s not new for MasterCard – the company has had an office in the city since it acquired technology company Orbiscom in 2008. However, this expansion means an increase in both staff, as well as the areas of focus for Dublin technology team members, including:

MasterCard Labs - Dublin is already one of the four key locations for MasterCard Labs, the company’s research and development function tasked with fast-tracking innovative products and services to bring them to market quickly. MasterCard Labs is headed up globally by Garry Lyons, the former CEO of Orbiscom and MasterCard’s Chief Innovation Officer, who is based in the Dublin office.

Center of Excellence for Java Development. The Dublin office has been designated as MasterCard’s Center of Excellence for Java Development, one of the predominant programming languages for ecommerce, mobile and other emerging payment technologies.

inControl. MasterCard’s inControl platform team will be based in the Dublin office. MasterCard inControl is a key product that MasterCard offers to help customers and cardholders set custom controls on usage of their credit, debit and prepaid cards, offering improved insights on how and where their cards are used.

The Dublin team will work collaboratively with other MasterCard office locations, particularly the MasterCard Technologies headquarters office in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

“MasterCard chose Ireland as a place to expand our presence because, from our vantage point, we see consumers moving toward a world beyond cash, shopping and paying for the things that matter to them in ways that best fit their needs and lifestyles with a simple tap, click or touch in-store, online or on a mobile device,” says Reeg. “We are pleased to make this investment in Ireland, which builds on our existing presence. The calibre of highly qualified, talented people and the Government’s commitment to science, technology and innovation, gave us confidence that this was the ideal setting for our new Global Technologies office.”

Welcoming the announcement, Barry O’Leary, CEO of IDA Ireland says, ‘’MasterCard’s decision to locate a global office in Dublin, with the creation of approximately 130 new jobs, is most welcome news. The global technologies office will meet the requirements of the rapidly growing area of payments. This announcement is in keeping with IDA’s focus on targeting technological investments in the financial services sector which is a key growth area. I wish MasterCard every success with their investment and offer the continued support of IDA Ireland into the future.’’

About MasterCard

MasterCard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a global payments and technology company. It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @mastercardnews, join the conversation on The Heart of Commerce Blog and subscribe for the latest news.